Ngongotahā's 350-home development will help housing shortage in Rotorua

The Government has bought 31 Ngongotahā Rd, with plans to build 350 homes. Photo / Andrew Warner

Building 350 new public and private homes near Ngongotahā will help ease Rotorua’s chronic housing shortage, and the Government has given assurances it is doing due diligence to ensure the community isn’t impacted and flooding issues are addressed.

The development at 31 Ngongotahā Rd was a “significant opportunity” to increase housing supply and would include private and public housing options, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development deputy chief executive Ben Dalton said in a statement.

The ministry has released more details about the development ahead of Thursday’s public meeting in Ngongotahā, when Dalton was expected to take concerned locals through the details of what was being planned.

The ministry has bought the 15.9-hectare site through its Land for Housing Programme, but the price tag remains secret because of commercial sensitivity.

Dalton said the ministry’s vision was for a staged development of the site.

Planning and construction are expected to take place over the next five to seven years, with the first stage building approximately 196 homes. The homes will likely be a mix of standalone, duplex, and terraced housing.

“The need for housing across the country, including Rotorua, has continued to grow. Rotorua has experienced strong population growth in recent years, but new housing supply has not kept up,” Dalton said.

He said Rotorua’s population grew by about 9000 people between June 2013 and August 2022, but only 1600 homes were consented – and fewer completed.

Rotorua Lakes Council and Te Arawa Rotorua Housing Strategy - He Papakāinga, He Hāpori Taurikura indicated there was a shortfall of up to 1750 homes in late 2019.

“Through the Rotorua Housing Accord, HUD is committed to exploring every opportunity to increase housing supply in Rotorua to alleviate the severe housing stress experienced by many people in the Rotorua community.

“Progressing this development in partnership with Watchman Residential enables a significant residential development to get under way to maintain the significant increase in building activity across Rotorua.”

The ministry has entered a Memorandum of Understanding with Watchman Residential to progress design and consenting works. Watchman Residential has a team of consultants working directly with councils and the Ministry for the Environment on consenting applications and requirements.

The relevant due diligence investigations on the site - including legal, geotechnical, contamination, quantity surveying, ecologist, valuation, traffic and infrastructure investigations - have been completed.

Dalton said the ministry was aware of the flooding issues at this site, and this would inform the final design, including making sure that homes were not damaged by flooding, the development did not give rise to flooding effects upstream or downstream of the catchment, and ensuring that the overall flood storage was not reduced.

Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell said the council sought further information from the ministry because of community interest, and she was pleased the information was being made public.

“The development will increase housing supply and provide the many people looking for homes that match their needs with more opportunities, such as first-home buyers. Additional residents will also help support local businesses.”

She said housing development in Ngongotahā had been on the cards for some time.

“While it’s a shame it wasn’t progressed earlier, I’m reassured that due diligence into environmental and infrastructure requirements has now been completed. This should give residents confidence that the community will not be negatively impacted.”

Tonight’s meeting is at the Ngongotahā Hall between 5.30pm and 7.30pm.